Wii news and links

Sometimes I forget that buttonmashing.com is one of the only sites people (read: my friends) visit for gaming news. Often forget to post links to exciting news I find, especially when it comes to the Nintendo Wii, because I figure most of you have already seen it somewhere else. But for those of you that don’t scour over 100+ video game blog feeds, allow me to enlighten you. I’ll be linking to a lot of cool Wii news, now that the launch is hopefully only months away. The excitement is building up fast. On to the links:

USA Today had an interview with Reginald Fils-Aime, Nintendo of America’s new president and chief operating officer, where they discussed all-things-Wii. Most important was the topic of the online system that the Wii will sport. From the article:

Q: You’re not pursuing a subscription model?

A: We view online gaming as essentially an enhanced way to enjoy the gaming experience and drive more sales of hardware and software.

Q: How do you extend your online strategy to Wii?

A: It’s the same premise. We will offer online-enabled games that the consumers will not have to pay a subscription fee for. They’ll be able to enjoy that right out of the box. The Wii console is going to be Wi-Fi enabled, so essentially, you’ll be able to plug it in and go. It won’t have hidden fees or costs.

I’ve said it before and I’ll keep on saying it — I hope and pray that Nintendo’s online service is similar to Microsoft’s. The Gamer card, the Gamer score, the Xbox Live Arcade, all of those features would be so cool to see on Wii’s online service. This is something I would pay for! Give it to me for free, if you want, but please make it worth my while. Let me play RC Pro-Am multiplayer. Let me co-op Contra with my friends. I’d love to know how my high-score on 1942 compares with the rest of the world. There is so much untapped nostalgia and potential here that it boggles my mind. I could go on forever with possibilities.

Nintendo is also starting to announce titles that will be available for the Wii. Wikipedia actually has a list of all games that have been mentioned for the Wii. Most recently, Mario Strikers Charged and Battalion Wars 2 have been announced. There is definitely going to be a tug of war between new titles and retro downloads.

Twilight Princess, the new Zelda title will sport a totally new control scheme. Swing the Wii-mote to swing Link’s sword is going to be riot. Or tire out your wimpy-birds arms. Sissy.

There’s still a lot of speculation going on with regard to the launch price for the Wii. It hovers between 170 and 250 dollars. Does it really matter? If it stays around the 250$ mark, Nintendo is going to sell every single console they manufacture. Period.

There’s more info coming out daily about the Wii, little details, hints, and snippets. It’s all very exciting. I just hope I can keep up!

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Gone are the days of holding the B button and waiting for your sword to glow. With the Wii, just move your Nunchaku in a circle to unleash the swirly wrath of death that Link so kindly deliverers to his foes. The more I read, the more I want to run right out and buy myself a Wii.

The sheer number of launch titles is amazing.

Everyone is talking about how awesome it will be for shooters, but frankly, the Red Steel approach looks dumb, having to moving all the way to the edge of the screen to turn, move your “cursor?” Back to aim at the enemies that were revealed in the process of turning.